The Stanford University training program in academic gastroenterology supports promising postdoctoral fellows to conduct research in areas relevant to digestive diseases. The trainees work in a wide variety of disciplines under the tutelage of accomplished members of the Stanford faculty. The adult and pediatric GI programs are active in a wide variety of research areas that include: (a) host-pathogen interactions; (b) th basic biology of enteric and hepatic viruses and the development of novel therapeutic strategies; (c) neurogastroenterology, including motility, growth factors, and pain; (d) developmental biology of digestive organs; (e) signal transduction in cancer biology; (f) health services and clinical outcomes research; (g) bioengineering and medical device development; (h) mucosal immunology and the immunology of digestive diseases; (i) stem cell biology. Mentors have often been recruited from basic science departments in the Stanford community whose work is pertinent to digestive diseases. For those trainees focused on clinical research such as clinical outcomes, epidemiology, or health services, the pursuit of a Master's degree is required. The trainees are largely drawn from individuals in the adult and pediatric clinical gastroenterology training programs who have already demonstrated a commitment toward pursuing an academic investigative career. Many of the trainees were selected through the Stanford Clinical Investigator Program that identifies medicine residents who have already committed to an investigative career and wish to begin their gastroenterology fellowships after the second year of their residency. Trainees are required to spend a minimum of two years in research, although this is frequently three to five years. The program is enriched by the NIH-funded Stanford Digestive Disease Center, which offers support in terms of grants and the use of core facilities for research in digestive diseases. In addition, numerous other research institutes at Stanford University provide the trainee with a multitude of opportunities. Success in attracting outstanding trainees combined with the excellent research opportunities available at Stanford University have contributed to the program's success. Nine-four percent of supported trainees have published their work. The program's success is also reflected by the fact that 87% of trainees over the past 10 years remain active in academic careers.